The Miami Student | October 1, 2019

ESTABLISHED 1826 — OLDEST COLLEGE NEWSPAPER WEST OF THE ALLEGHENIES

Volume 148 No. 5

Miami University — Oxford, Ohio

TUESDAY, OCTOBER 1, 2019

Miami responds to student’s victimblaming tweets

‘DAYS OF OLD AND DAYS TO BE’

MAGGIE ANGEVINE STAFF WRITER

On Thursday, Sept. 26, Miami University tweeted a statement in response to a student’s actions on the platform, identifying him only as a member of the community.

“Recent tweets from a member of our community about sexual assault are in conflict with the University’s Code of Love and Honor,” the university wrote in a tweet. “Victim-blaming and shaming has no place in our community and are incongruent with Miami’s core values.”

The university then added a link to a page with information about support and resources for survivors of sexual assault.

The reason for the outcry?

Sophomore Connor Phlegar had tweeted that although rape is bad, if someone gets drunk, they’re putting themself in that situation.

Phlegar was responding to a 60 Minutes interview with Chanel Miller, the sexual assault survivor from the 2015 case where a former Stanford University student, Brock Turner, violently assaulted her.

Miller, who was referred to as “Emily Doe” throughout her case before going public, was attacked by Turner after she passed out. Some people, like Phlegar, responded to the incident by saying that because Miller had been drinking, she was the one at fault for her own rape.

During a 60 Minutes interview, Miller addressed the critcisms and declared that “rape is not a punishment for getting drunk.”

Her words have been plastered across social media since the interview.

Phlegar replied to a tweet quoting Miller and wrote, “It’s not right to rape anyone, but she put herself in that situation, so she is suffering the consequences of her actions. I can’t really feel bad for her. The person that raped her is still a terrible person that should not have done that but it was her decision to get drunk.”

The tweet caused immediate uproar and garnered national attention.

Phlegar later deleted the original tweet but posted twice more defending his stance.

“She made a poor decision,” he wrote in his defense. “And I agree that the guy shouldn’t have raped her, but to say that she is completely CONTINUED ON PAGE 3

DAVID KWIATKOWSKI STAFF WRITER

Murmurs of conversation in the Shade Family Room are silenced by the lights cutting out completely, followed by a blue light slowly emulating from beneath the stage.

Eager students await their chance for the spotlight, but more make up the audience cozying up in the various leather armchairs around the room. The emcees make their way up to the mics, and that can only mean one thing.

It’s showtime.

This past Friday, Miami Activities and Programming (MAP) did something they had never done before. They hosted an open mic night, with the door open to all kinds of talents including poetry, singing and stand-up comedy.

Director of MAP Series Events Alissa Cook said that it was an idea the organization had been tinkering with for a while.

“It is basically what we did with our coffee house series but with the performer being the students,” Cook said.

MAP’s coffee house series involved a musician coming to Miami and performing whatever they wanted to.

Some people signed up before the show started, but with the show’s placement being in one of the main entrances of Armstrong, a lot of students were inspired enough to sign up throughout the night as they could not help but be lured in by the spectacle.

First-year Sakshi Shah performed a song that was entirely in Hindi. She found out about the event through MAP’s Instagram page, and she knew she wanted to take part in it.

“I wasn’t sure if I was going to make it or not because of my homework,” Shah said. “But I got it done and stopped by. It seemed really chill so CONTINUED ON PAGE 3

JAYLEN PERKINS AND RANDI THOMAS HAVE PARALLEL RESUMES AND PASSIONS. MULTIMEDIA EDITOR BEN DEETER

BEN DEETER

MULTIMEDIA EDITOR Two weeks ago, hundreds of students, faculty and staff demanded action from Miami University President Gregory Crawford to combat climate change.

One month ago, hundreds of students marched against white supremacy and gun violence.

Two years ago, Jaylen Perkins and dozens of other students in the Black Action Movement (BAM) 2.0 demanded action from the university on diversity and inclusion. Only after several demonstrations did they get a meeting with administrators.

But today, Perkins doesn’t have to demand a seat in the rooms where decisions are made. He’s the student body president.

At first, though, he wasn’t not sure if he wanted to run.

“I think, ultimately, what did it for me was working on behalf of black students sophomore year with the Black Action Movement,

For current, former student body presidents, activist roots shape administrative action and working with administration and seeing how willing they were to work with students,” Perkins said. “It helped me see how serving as an effective advocate can make such a big change.”

Perkins joins a list of only six other black men who have served as Miami’s student body president. The first came in the 19511952 academic year, when Wells Didlick served as the president of the Student-Faculty Council, the equivalent position at the time.

Perkins is not the only black student body president still walking Miami’s halls.

Randi Thomas, the director of Miami’s Office of Institutional Relations, also served as student body president during the 19871988 academic year.

The two men have near-identical re-

sumes. Both served as president of the Black Student Action Association, resident assistants, members of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity and were active in advancing the issues of black students at Miami.

One of the major issues Thomas worked on was pushing the university to divest from companies that traded or operated in South Africa. At the time, South Africa still maintained its racial segregation and discrimination policy of apartheid. “[T]o be able to have been in those leadership positions and see change, having contact with the administration, seeing what’s possible, and then hearing from students the things CONTINUED ON PAGE 3

A spotlight on student talent

THE SHADE FAMILY ROOM BECAME SHADE AUDITORIUM TO HOST MAP’S FIRST OPEN MIC NIGHT ON FRIDAY. THE MIAMI STUDENT KELSEY WARNING

This Issue Style

Here they are: Oxford City Council candidates Learn more about the five candidates running for office.

News » page 5

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Getting spooked in anthropology Ever wondered what goes bump in the night?

Now you can find out.

Culture » page 6

It’s baaaaaack.

Climate change and the end game

MU hockey kicks off season at home against Bowling Green on Sunday.

Our favorite Media Scholar is here to give us a reality check on our climate anxiety.

Sports » page 11

Opinion » page 12

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Miami responds to student’s victim-blaming tweets FROM FRONT

in the right is false. Why would I feel bad for someone that openly made poor decisions under their own power. The rape was just a consequence of her previous choices.”

Twitter users tagged Miami University in Phlegar’s replies and told them to do something about it.

One user tweeted, “Is this who you want representing your school?”

Phlegar then posted a final comment on his account.

“I have deleted that tweet, but I still stand by what I said. I should have worded my view differently and apologize if I have hurt any of you in any way … but I hope that we have all expanded our views on the topic of rape.”

Each of his tweets had exponentially more replies than likes, and none had any retweets.

Phlegar did not respond to The Student’s repeated requests for comments.

Most of the backlash to Phlegar’s tweets was from non-Miami students, but students across campus were furious, demanding Miami take further action.

But the university was unable to because of the First Amendment protections afforded to students and their social media posts.

FROM FRONT

ble, and then hearing from students the things that they would like to see changed and made better, [taking action] becomes somewhat natural,” Thomas said.

Through their experiences as student body president, both Perkins and Thomas found that the reality of working with administration differs from the perceptions they had in their activist roots.

“I’ll say that one of the most important things to recognize and something that I keep getting reminded over and over again is that we’re on the same team,” Perkins said. “When we win, they win and when we lose, they definitely still win. But, at the end of the day they want what’s best for students.”

His challenge is communicating to students that the university is, in fact, on their side, particularly in the face of continuing controversy around issues related to race, the most recent iteration coming in the form of a promotional music video, “From Now On,” that some say inaccurately portrays the diver-

NEWS 3

TUESDAY, OCTOBER 1, 2019

Sophomore Chloe Alverson overheard classmates talking about the tweets and decided to look into them herself.

“I was honestly disgusted,” Alverson said. “It was a really insensitive thing to say, especially with everything that’s been happening on campus.”

Director of news and communications Claire Wagner told The Student that the tweets from the Miami account represented the school’s statement on the issue and declined to comment further.

Sexual assault survivors who wish to report an incident can contact campus security enforcement, including the Miami University Police Department at 513-519-2222, the Oxford Police Department at 513-523-4321, the Coordinator of Sexual Assault Prevention and Response Program at 513-529-1870 and any athletic coaches, academic or student organization advisor.

If students wish to speak to a non-mandatory reporter for confidential support, they can call or text Miami’s campus-based support specialists from Women Helping Women at 513431-1111. @newellmaggie angevims@miamioh.edu

A spotlight on student talent FROM FRONT

I just picked a song. I enjoy singing so I really just wanted to give it a shot.”

Her impromptu performance got rave reviews from the crowd, and Shah is looking forward to the next open mic night.

The top performance of the night, from the audience’s reaction, was from a three-person group that called themselves Used Car Dealership. Sophomores Owen Berg, Nathaniel Ike and Lyric Rains-Bury all teamed up very soon after the event began.

“I found out about [open mic] at 9 p.m.” Berg said. “I called Lyric up at 9:20 p.m. and we were all on stage by 10:10 p.m.”

Their set was also impromptu, as Berg played the chords to “Sunday Morning” by Maroon 5 on his guitar while Rains-Bury rapped over it. The audience was jamming along when suddenly the performance switched up. Berg began playing “Best Part” by Daniel Caesar and H.E.R. and Ike began singing. Rains-Bury and Ike soon

‘Days of old and days to be’ sity and culture on Miami’s campus.

“I’m a passionate believer that if you don’t feel like your voices are being heard, you need to yell louder,” Perkins said. “I say that being from the student activist perspective, as somebody who felt like nobody was listening, and I felt like I didn’t have anybody in that inside knowing exactly what was going on with our experiences.

“I just recognize that there’s so much intentionality that is behind our administration, and those that are our faculty and staff,” he explained. “On a day-to-day basis, they’re definitely trying to keep the students at the focal point. Whether or not it’s portrayed that way, whether or not that’s accepted that way, that’s ultimately what I believe is being done by administration at all different levels.”

“It’s not administration versus students; it’s administration for students,” Perkins added.

Perkins said his role as Student Body Pres-

ident has changed his mindset from being a student activist to “what’s best for the university, what’s best for the students’ perspective as well.”

Thomas said he has not shaken his activist mindset from his time as a student.

“President Perkins has to remind me that I’m administration and no longer a student activist because I don’t think you give that up when you graduate,” he said. “You kind of take that mindset with you.”

He stressed that even with this “same-side” reality, students should critically think about the issues they care about and not always take the administration at face value.

“I think that this may sound self-serving, but I don’t know of any administrators that wouldn’t want to sit down and talk to students, and find out what students would like and to begin to figure out, ‘Okay, how can we get there?’” Thomas said. “And if we can’t, I think they’ll say, ‘Well, we can’t get there.’

became a rap/sung duo and the crowd could not get enough of it.

The night was not just a gateway for Miami’s talent, it was also an opportunity for the students to watch their peers showcase their artistic side.

“I loved it with every fiber of my being,” sophomore Erin Bingaman said. “I loved the fact that people were going up there to show off their talents regardless if they were [the best] or not. It was fun.”

Overall, MAP was very pleased with how successful the night went.

“I think it went really well.” Cook said, “I was really excited to see all of the talent we had at Miami, and I don’t think we have a lot of opportunities like this.”

MAP is in the process of organizing more events that put student talent front and center with a live band karaoke night coming this November. For more information on more MAP events, email map@ miamioh.edu. kwiatkdm@miamioh.edu

And then I think then, it’s up to the students to say, ‘Well, maybe we can.’”

Encouraging that instinct in students’ minds is something Thomas strives to do in the Office of Institutional Relations.

He mentors students like Perkins, particularly students of color, and helps them develop as leaders.

Perkins, he hopes, is not the last black student to climb the student body president ladder.

“To bring them here is great,” Thomas said of future student leaders of color. “But we also have to make sure, as an institution, that we’re doing more than just laying out the menu of options that you can get involved in.

Because simply laying out those options, if I don’t know what those options really mean, you can be speaking a foreign language to me.

So how do we politely but firmly kind of nudge students into these activities?”

@BenDeeter

deeterbj@miamioh.edu

Miami receives federal grant to promote safety, provide resources for sexual assault survivors SHANNON DONNELLY THE MIAMI STUDENT

The United States Department of Justice (DOJ) recently granted Miami University $300,000 to be used for sexual assault prevention over the next three years. This grant is to be used to enhance sexual and interpersonal violence prevention, education and response programs that already exist as well as create new response programs.

The grant provided money for Miami to hire an additional full-time Women Helping Women advocate.

The university previously had only one advocate, Hannah Kuethe, who focuses on support services like meeting with students and accompanying them to Title XI hearings. If Kuethe was occupied and a student needed to talk, they had to wait until she was free, which could take hours.

Casey Frazee Katz, director of services for Butler County operations and campus-based services for Women Helping Women, said there isn’t yet data on how many more students are able to be helped by the additional coordinator since the position was just added.

Mady Depew, the coordinator hired with the grant, works with support services and prevention. This includes bystander intervention, consent talks and reaching out to marginalized groups who might be more atrisk, such as students with disabilities and international students. Depew plans to work on translating materials and making sure all survivors are being helped, Katz said.

While the grant lasts for three years, Katz is hopeful that the position will remain even after the money runs out and that the university will prioritize sexual assault prevention in the future.

“One of the goals [of the grant] seems to be to be able to help a university set up the in-

frastructure to have those services available,” she said.

The university has also formed a Comprehensive Community Response Team (CCRT) and created workshops for campus organizations as a result of the grant.

Miami is using the grant to reinforce and support existing programs such as the Step Up! Bystander Intervention Program, HAWKS Peer Health Educators programs, Men Against Rape and Sexual Assault (MARS) and other organizations on campus.

“The university believes that it is important to provide numerous survivor services so that the students feel supported,” said Rebecca Baudry Young, director of student wellness.

Young said the Miami University Police Department (MUPD) will also receive up-todate training on responding to sexual assault, as well as improving safety on campus, earning students’ trust and combatting gender bias.

“The grant does not live in one place,” Young said. “With this money, all of the community works with each other to be [on] the same page about [the] service that we want to provide.”

Sexual assault survivors who wish to report an incident can contact campus security enforcement, including the Miami University Police Department at 513-519-2222, the Oxford Police Department at 513-523-4321, the Coordinator of Sexual Assault Prevention and Response Program at 513-529-1870 and any athletic coaches, academic or student organization advisor.

If students wish to speak to a non-mandatory reporter for confidential support, they can call or text Miami’s campus-based support specialists from WomenHelpingWomen at 513-431-1111.

Additional reporting by Rachel Berry. donnelsr@miamioh.edu

Chris. Will. Sing. catch him at karaoke 11.18

4 NEWS

BERRYRD@MIAMIOH.EDU

TUESDAY, OCTOBER 1, 2019

City Council candidates discuss platforms and plans for Oxford TIM CARLIN

ASST. NEWS EDITOR

Five candidates are running for three open seats on Oxford City Council. Election day is on Tuesday, Nov. 5.

Jason Bracken

Jason Bracken is a scientist at heart.

He’s a biologist and a doctoral candidate with a masters from Miami University’s Institute for the Environment and Sustainability (IES).

He moved to Oxford in 2012 for a masters program but stayed because of his love for the city.

“It easily could have been a twoyear thing, but instead it’s blown up

into something much more,” Bracken said.

Bracken decided to run for Council to give back to his community in a bigger way after volunteering for many years.

Bracken considers himself a progressive.

“I think in a community you should consider first the most vulnerable members,” Bracken said. “A lot of our petty crime stems from issues with basic needs and addiction. And so I think addressing that not only helps those who are most vulnerable, who I think are most deserving of our help in terms of need, but also will have ripple effects in other areas.”

Bracken said the city should be taking a proactive approach to the housing issues it currently faces.

“So far, we’ve only been responding to private entities that want to develop and then questioning whether that works for a city, but there’s not much room there,” Bracken said. “Instead, we should be proactively seeking out the types of housing that meet our community needs.”

Bracken is a self-described “policy wonk” and is excited to further develop his ideas with city staff if elected.

Hueston Kyger

Hueston Kyger is Oxford born and raised. He’s lived here for 38 years, and hopes to give City Council a younger, more business-minded perspective.

“I guess kind of a sense of duty,” Kyger said of why he chose to run. “I love Oxford; I want Oxford to be awesome — continue to be awesome — and I think that I can help point us in the right direction.”

Kyger operates University Motors, a full service garage and used car dealership on College Corner Pike.

Kyger is a first-time candidate for Council, but he has volunteered for many community events over the years, including the annual Oxford Community Picnic and the annual Oxford Wine and Craft Beer Festival.

“I’ve always had my ear to the proverbial grindstone of what’s going on,” Kyger said.

Kyger said he does not have any platforms in his campaign, only the desire to move Oxford forward.

“I do not have any axes to grind,” Kyger said. “I don’t have any things I’m going in to try to change or try to do different. There’s no agenda for me … I want to keep the ship steered in a solid direction.”

He added that he’s interested in creating housing stock for the city and increasing neighborhood connectivity.

“We need to add more housing,” Kyger said. “A lot of people talk about affordable housing in Oxford. It is an issue. It’s a difficult issue to tackle just due to the effects the student population [has] on the price points and the market.”

Chris Skoglind

Before moving to Oxford in 2016, Chris Skoglind was a public servant for over 20 years in Shrewsberry, Pennsylvania.

Skoglind’s wife grew up in Oxford and graduated from Miami, so when it came time for the pair to retire, they knew exactly the place to go.

Skoglind currently serves on the Historic Architecture Preservation Committee and said he’s always enjoyed giving back to his community and wants to continue that trend.

One of Skoglind’s goals is supporting the Oxford Police Department (OPD) and the Oxford Fire Department (OFD), but he did not outline how he would do so.

“Police have a lot of challenges here, given the types of people that make up Oxford,” Skoglind said. “I think Chief Jones does a very good

Glenn Ellerbe

Glenn Ellerbe’s first term on City Council has been about education and transparency. He said he originally ran for a seat on council to better understand how the city came to its decisions.

Now, he’s running for reelection to continue making policy he feels will better the entire community.

Some of Ellerbe’s proudest accomplishments during his first term include creating the Police Community Relations Commission, passing the levy for

the Oxford Area Trails System, and bringing electric scooters to Oxford.

During his first four-year term, Ellerbe said his broad focus was making Oxford a city of choice for all travelers, which is something he hopes to continue to do if reelected.

Two of Ellerbe’s current platform pillars are land use equity and further development of multimodal transportation, like e-scooters.

Ellerbe also said he looks at every decision from a municipal focus as opposed to a special interest perspective.

He said he thinks about who will be doing the legwork for the city.

“I like being an elected official. I hate being a politician,” Ellerbe said.

Ellerbe said he encourages all citizens, especially Miami students, to get involved in local politics by joining a commission. He said it’s the best place to start public service.

Ellerbe compared living in Oxford to living on a movie set. He said the stereotypical college town atmosphere drew him in and helped him fall in love with the city. Ellerbe added that fostering good relations with the university is important because students are drawn to the movie-like experience that Oxford offers.

job, him and his staff, but I know there’s probably new challenges coming each and every day, and we have to be able to do what we can to support his department in keeping Oxford safe for everyone.”

Another one of Skoglind’s goals is to step up the town-gown relationship between the city and Miami.

“What if we had a standing item on the City Council agenda that said a representative from Miami comes in and says, ‘Hey, what’s going on?’ and shares what’s long and short term and so forth,” Skoglind asked rhetorically.

Skoglind’s other platforms include maintaining Oxford’s fiscal responsibility, improving the mass transit system by looking into alternative fuel methods and creating more housing diversity, such as different floor plans, locations and prices.

Bill Snavely

Bill Snavely moved to Oxford for a job at Miami but stayed because of the community he found here. “I taught at Miami for 30 years,” Snavely said. “So, that’s what brought me to town. It was Oxford that kept me here, though.”

Snavely served 12 years on City Council beginning in the late 1980s and is currently the chair of Oxford’s Planning Commission.

“I’m pretty much a known quantity,” Snavely said of his continued public service. “People know who I am, and they know that I do my homework.”

Snavely said he’s proud of many things he was able to work on while in office including the creation of Uptown City Park, fixing the annual water shortage by creating new wells and the practice of saving for municipal constructions instead of

raising taxes.

Snavely is running for another term with a campaign focused on the environment.

“I served on the Climate Action Steering Committee, so I support us implementing the recommendations of the Climate Action Steering Committee,” Snavely said.

Affordable housing is another one of Snavely’s platforms.

“Right now, it’s very difficult for anybody, but particularly those of low or moderate income, to afford to live here,” he added.

Snavely said he’s running for City Council again because he’s not done giving back to the city.

“I’m retired, so I have the time,” Snavely said with a laugh. “And I still want to serve the community.”

Clothesline Project lifts survivors’ stories out of email inboxes EMILY DATTILO

CULTURE EDITOR Last semester, during a shift at Paesano’s Pasta House, junior Alyssa Burnett went in the back to check her phone and saw two safety bulletin sexual assault report emails.

After realizing that she had to walk home alone, Burnett began making plans. There would be no headphones, no stops in Armstrong and, even though her calves ached from standing all evening at work, no loitering.

She is not alone in her realizations or in her fear. *** Thirteen reports of sexual assault have been filed since the beginning of the semester, and on Sept. 27, the university sent out its “Annual Security and Fire Safety Report and other Important Information” email. One of the email’s links led to a description of the safety bulletins.

Burnett has a special email folder for safety bulletins. She finds them “stupid” and “ridiculous” and says that “all they do is make you feel afraid.”

She wonders why concrete actions to punish perpetrators aren’t publicized

by the university and why there are no follow-ups to these emails.

“I want to know ... the consequences,” Burnett said. “If you do this at Miami, this is what is going to happen.”

Junior Katie Carene also reads the email reports but doesn’t find them very helpful.

“One of the problems with the email is that you read it once and then forget about it,” Carene said. “It gets lost in your email thread and in your inbox.”

According to the university’s campus safety and security website, “The purpose of a Safety Bulletin is to enable persons to protect themselves and to heighten safety awareness, as well as to seek information that will lead to an arrest and conviction of the perpetrator when violent crimes against persons or major crimes against property have occurred.”

The Jeanne Clery Act legally requires universities to distribute crime reports to faculty, staff and students.

John McCandless, Miami University Police Chief, said that he hopes the reports raise awareness and potentially help with safety measures. The law also requires a list of safety tips, which typically reside at the bottom of the report.

“Women Helping Women, along

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with other people on campus, helped us to come up with the safety tips,” McCandless said. “We want the safety tips to be helpful while trying to avoid victims feeling like they made mistakes.” *** One safety bulletin, sent out on Sept. 15, reported that “a female student was sexually assaulted by a male subject whom she did not know” near Cook Field at 11:15 p.m. No subject description was available.

These email reports do not include any personal stories or explanation of the trauma that individuals experience during and after these situations.

The Clothesline Project is one event that tries to give these stories a platform.

On Oct. 3 and 4, the Center for Student Diversity and Inclusion (CSDI) will host the 2019 Clothesline Project.

About 400 t-shirts, collected over the last 21 years, will hang near the Seal.

The shirts give a voice to Miami students and staff affected by interpersonal violence and sexual assault.

Survivors and allies are able to create shirts in the days leading up to the display. The Clothesline Project also provides t-shirts and markers and offers a private room for individuals

to create t-shirts. All of the shirts are anonymous.

The event itself is exempt from mandatory reporting, and Women Helping Women will be present for support.

Senior Viengsamai Fetters helps with the project and has been an intern at CSDI for two years. They said that the event helps survivors feel like they’re not alone and also resonates with viewers of the exhibit because these t-shirts are from voices within the community.

“The fact that this is Miami really strikes home,” Fetters said. “It’s important to listen to the people who are part of this community and who have been part of this community.”

Rhonda Jackson, the administrative assistant in the Center, oversees the Clothesline Project. She said the Project resonates with people because it allows them to hear the stories of others.

“I think it gives a context of realness to sexual assault, interpersonal violence and sexual trauma that I think, unless you’ve experienced it and or have been someone that is a suvivor, it’s sort of hard to get your head wrapped around,” Jackson said. “Also, it activates people into wanting to do some-

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thing and to be active and not to be passive around interpersonal violence.”

Individuals can make a shirt to add to the display from Sept. 16 - Oct. 2 in Armstrong 2030B. The Clothesline Project, presented by the Center for Student Diversity and Inclusion, will be displayed from 10 a.m. - 3 p.m. on Oct.3 and Oct. 4 on Academic Quad.

Sexual assault survivors who wish to report an incident can contact campus security enforcement, including the Miami University Police Department at 513-519-2222, the Oxford Police Department at 513-523-4321, the Coordinator of Sexual Assault Prevention and Response Program at 513-529-1870 and any athletic coaches, academic or student organization advisor.

If students wish to speak to a non-mandatory reporter for confidential support, they can call or text Miami’s campus-based support specialists from Women Helping Women at 513-431-1111. @emily_dattilo dattilec@miamioh.edu

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Sanjay Gupta says medical storytelling is key to improving knowledge, health care conditions ALEX COX

STAFF WRITER

SANJAY GUPTA IS A LICENSED NEUROSURGEON AND ALSO WORKS AS A JOURNALIST. THE MIAMI STUDENT OLIVIA HENNESSEY

tribe to find out why they have a nearly zero percent case incidence of heart disease.

“The reason we tell these stories, I think, is in part because we believe the stories can lead to something,” Gupta said. “They can lead to people feeling more connected, more compassionate, more curious, more compelled to do something.”

Even when he is functioning in only one role, Gupta believes that his medical practice is improved by his

New Miami provost devotes his life to learning DAN WOZNIAK STAFF WRITER

Jason Osborne loved college so much he decided he never wanted to leave.

Osborne never set out to become a provost; he just knew he wanted a job where he could keep learning.

The university has always been his playground.

As Miami University’s provost, or chief academic officer, Osborne spends much of his time in Roudebush Hall studying how to improve Miami as an academic institution.

When he’s not working, he spends time with his family, working on his new house and taking his daughter to ballet practice.

If he gets the chance, he’ll relax by working out on his rowing or elliptical machines or taking his boat out on Brookville Lake in Indiana.

Osborne grew up in Horseheads, New York, in the 1970s.

“It was a great place to grow up [without] having the issues of big cities and urban life,” Osborne said.

He spent a great deal of his childhood exploring the dense woods that backed his parents’ house and could come and go as he pleased.

Horseheads’ population is a quarter of the size of Oxford’s and is predominantly made up of middle-class white residents.

As a middle-aged white man who comes from an affluent family, Osborne understands why people might question his legitimacy as the person to help increase diversity on Miami’s campus. Although Osborne’s primary duty is to improve academics, he will be partially responsible for implementing the One Campus Climate Survey Task Force recommendations, which focus on diversity and inclusion.

“In college and in graduate school, I studied some of the aspects of social

justice, and my research was kind of around stereotypes and stigma,” Osborne said. “[White people] don’t come from a minoritized background, but through some developmental experience, many of us come to want to be allies in that space.”

Osborne said there were a couple of African-American students and a few Jewish students he went to school with and that homophobic sentiment and rhetoric was a part of the culture he grew up in.

“LBTQ issues were not even really on anyone’s radar,” Osborne said. “If people thought someone was dumb, they would call them gay.”

Osborne said his parents were very far ahead of the culture in wanting to respect other people and value differences, and he thinks he’s carried that mentality into his life.

He also believes his high school experience allowed him to better understand what it’s like to feel different.

“Let’s say I was introverted, and sometimes people would assume I’m either gay or Jewish, which was interesting because I’m neither,” Osborne said. “But that was just kind of a way of them identifying me as an outlier or an outsider, and so I kind of had that experience of otherness.”

After high school, Osborne attended the University of Rochester and majored in psychology.

As a student, Osborne was a night owl and would spend a great deal of his time studying and conducting research.

“I fell in love with learning and with higher education and with being in an environment like a university where there’s all these amazing people to be around.”

Miami’s commitment to love and honor is what appealed to Osborne the most and is the primary reason he decided to accept the position as provost.

reporting and vice-versa.

As an investigative journalist, Gupta said he is able to look at health care through a unique lens and learn to better connect with his patients.

As a neurosurgeon, he is able to better understand the medical phenomenon he covers.

By working in both fields simultaneously, he believes he can make a bigger impact. coxaj4@miamioh.edu

Prior to becoming Miami’s provost, Osborne served as the Dean of the Graduate School at Clemson University from 2015 to 2019.

Before that, Osborne was a professor and chair of the department of Counseling and Human Development at the University of Louisville and served in various roles at at Old Dominion University, North Carolina State University, University of Oklahoma, University of Buffalo Medical School and Niagara County Community College.

“The thing that got me excited as an undergraduate and really the reason why I am where I am today is because I never wanted to leave the university,” Osborne said.

Outside of academia, Osborne has two college-aged sons with his first wife and a nine-year-old daughter with his current wife, Sherri Brown-Osborne, who is currently teaching a class for the Master of Art in Social Work (MASW) program.

Osborne met Sheri Brown while he was at North Carolina State University on the dating website Match. com.

“We first met at a restaurant near my practice, and we literally shut the place down and talked the entire night,” Sheri Brown-Osborne said.

“They were literally putting up chairs and ready to kick us out, so it was definitely a very good first date.”

In 2008, Osborne and Brown married and had their first daughter a year after.

“Even though Jason works really hard, and works a lot, and loves and is dedicated to his work, he’s also just as dedicated to his family,” Brown-Osborne said. “He’s truly a family man.”

Although Osborne continues to learn like the boy who would explore the forest and the committed undergraduate student within him once did, his passion resides in spreading knowledge.

In three words, Sherri Brown-Osborne describes her husband as brilliant, driven and kind.

Osborne only used one: educator. @dan_wozniak wozniad2@miamioh.edu

$4.5 million in funding approved for pre-design of Health Sciences Building MAGGIE PENA

THE MIAMI STUDENT Miami University is building a new health science facility, which will house the current Nursing and Speech Pathology/Audiology programs, as well as the inaugural Physician’s Assistant program.

The Board of Trustees (BoT) approved partial funding for the design and pre-construction phase of the building at its meeting on Sept. 19.

The pre-design phase has been allocated $4.5 million.

The new building was announced spring 2019 when the project was still looking for designers and builders.

Architects and designers have been hired for the project, hailing from Ohio, Indiana and Minnesota.

The BoT is estimated to approve $96 million for the entire project.

David Creamer, senior vice president for finance and business services, said these estimates come from evaluating industry norms, comparing the

MUPD BUDGETS FOR NEW PARKING SYSTEM CAROLINE HAUBENSTRICKER

THE MIAMI STUDENT Dr. Sanjay Gupta, CNN’s chief medical correspondent, addressed several hundred Miami University students and Oxford community members in Millett Hall last Tuesday to discuss how the health care and journalism industries cross paths and benefit each other.

Gupta, a neurosurgeon and journalist, explained that his dual career has given him a unique opportunity to be not only a doctor, but also a lifelong student and storyteller.

While covering the war on terror in the Middle East as a reporter for CNN, Gupta was asked to perform an emergency brain surgery on a lieutenant who had been shot in the head during battle. Lacking the proper equipment, Gupta used a Black and Decker home drill that he sterilized and the inside of an IV bag to drill a hole in the soldier’s skull, relieving the otherwise fatal pressure on his brain.

“The dance, sometimes, between medicine and media can be a bit awkward and emotionally challenging,” Gupta said.

Gupta looks for the story behind each case: whether it’s researching why American health care costs have risen or living among an Amazonian

NEWS 5

TUESDAY, OCTOBER 1, 2019

designs to similar buildings in other locations and guessing how much the building will cost based on those comparisons.

Creamer also said that the sources for funding have not yet been finalized. The final funding plan will be submitted for approval from the BoT next year.

The Nursing program began in the fall of 2018, and as of this year, neither the Nursing nor Speech Pathology/Audiology programs have all of the necessary technology for their studies, said Robert Bell, an interim university architect and director of planning, architecture and engineering.

In addition to providing updated and new resources for the existing programs, the building will also serve the new Physician’s Assistant program. Classes for this program are expected to begin in the fall of 2022.

Once construction is complete, the Health Services Center will reside in the new building. This placement

anticipates increased collaboration among the Recreation Center and the Health departments, including both research and activity-based partnership, Bell said.

“Since we are encompassing health programs, and the programs are focusing on holistic human health, we wanted to make the building a healthy building,” Bell said.

A “healthy” building would allow more natural light to flow through the building, as well as create better indoor air quality. The building would also strive to provide areas for students to de-stress, emphasizing the mental health aspect of the building.

The increased collaboration among health departments and recreational activities will strive to create a “health district,” Bell said.

Construction is scheduled to begin in June 2020 and should be completed by the summer of 2022. @maggieloup penaml@miamioh.edu

This semester, the Miami University Police Department (MUPD) fully implemented a new parking pass system, called License Plate Recognition (LPR), which replaces physical parking passes with license plate scanning technology.

The technology costs approximately $34,000 for equipment on each individual MUPD-issued vehicle that utilizes this new system.

Each vehicle is equipped with two two-camera imagers, a processing unit, a tablet with GPS systems, cellular and WiFi capabilities and a thermal printer.

The police department has purchased three vehicles to utilize this new technology.

MUPD has been budgeting for this purchase for the past two years.

“Because Parking and Transportation Services is an auxiliary enterprise, it is expected to generate its own revenue to cover expenses.

Parking Services generates revenue through parking permit sales, parking garage and meter fees and parking fines,” MUPD Captain Ben Spilman said.

Spilman said that under this new technology, MUPD is employing the same amount of police officers and that the efficiency of the staff’s work is expected to improve with the investment of this new technology.

“Using LPR is far less labor intensive than visual enforcement, and it provides much greater information about the use and availability of parking resources on campus, allowing us to better plan for future needs,” Spilman said. @haubenstrickerc haubence@miamioh.edu

Alpha Chapter of Phi Delta Theta Fraternity to return

PHI DELTA THETA WAS SUSPENDED ABOUT A YEAR AND A HALF AGO. ASST. PHOTO EDITOR BO BRUECK

MAGGIE ANGEVINE STAFF WRITER

Miami University’s Phi Delta Theta (Phi Delt) fraternity has begun the process of “recolonization” after being suspended in the fall of 2017. An informal recruitment process is beginning this fall, and formal recruitment for freshmen will take place during the spring of 2020.

Approximately 40 years after Miami was chartered, six students banded together to form Phi Delt, headquartering the organization at Miami and becoming the “alpha chapter” of 191 chapters nationwide.

Almost two centuries later, the Alpha chapter was suspended from Miami’s campus by its national council for violating their risk-management policies. Prior to the suspension, the chapter was on probation for failing to observe the alcohol-free housing policy. The chapter has been suspended from campus multiple times in the past two decades, also for violations of risk-management and alcohol policies.

Risk-management policies are guidelines for a Greek chapter instituted by its respective national organization and are meant to promote the safety and well-being of the members. Typically, the policies set rules regarding alcohol consumption in the house or at registered events, anti-hazing rules and new member education guidelines.

The national headquarters of the fraternity released a statement regarding the suspension, saying, “Phi Delta Theta is committed to the health and safety of its members,” adding that the chapter would return in the fall 2019 semester.

Now the process of that re-entry has begun, starting with a campus visit from national representatives to work with the Interfraternity Council (IFC) on the rejoining process.

The IFC voted to allow the chapter to begin rejoining this fall, with informal recruitment before winter break for upperclassmen and formal recruitment this spring that will include first-years. The goal of informal recruitment is to reach the chapter average (of other Phi Delt chapters across the country) before formal recruitment, said Adam Dralle, Miami’s associate director of fraternity and sorority life.

The goal of involving national representatives in local chapter recruitment is to give them more control over the students they recruit for the new “colony.”

“They can have a lot more say in the culture of the organization and the type of man that they’re looking for,” Dralle said.

The new chapter will be composed entirely of new members, as none of the previous brothers who were suspended in 2017 are allowed to rejoin the fraternity.

Right now, Miami is not aware of any underground activity taking place with the former members, all of whom were removed from active member status and given alumni status.

The informal recruitment period, beginning on Oct. 20 and concluding on Dec. 6, will allow the national reps to build an entirely new chapter by the end of the eight-week period.

Dralle said the new chapter will be distanced from the old one, with the national headquarters hoping to return to its values of “brotherhood, a high moral standard and a high degree of mental culture,” which is Dralle’s term for prioritizing academics.

“We have impressed upon them the expectation to take into account recent events and do everything in their power to ensure that the men that they’re recruiting into this first colony are not going to fall down the same rabbit hole,” Dralle said, referring to recent issues with other local fraternities, specifically Delta Tau Delta. “They are aware of the importance of honoring the fraternity and the community.”

In order to return to campus, any Greek organization that has been kicked off must petition the IFC to be reinstated. This process involves presentations from national members on why a chapter should return followed by a vote by the council, which consists of representatives from each member fraternity.

The council of Phi Delt’s soonto-be peers allowed them to petition back on campus with the stipulation of having a positive relationship with the national organization as well as following honor codes and laws to the letter.

Though the stamp of approval comes from the IFC, Miami is also in favor of Phi Delt’s return to campus.

“We want to, as an office, be able to support the chapter fully when they return,” Dralle said.

The council has worked along with the school to create a document titled “Honoring Fraternities,” a set of “living, breathing guidelines” meant to help fraternities on campus “positively challenge norms that have traditionally existed in the fraternity community.”

The document encourages fraternities to offer “something of value to the community,” Dralle said. “We want to work cooperatively and collaboratively, and foster that involved relationship.”

The “recolonization” process is expected to take 12 to 18 months, at which point there will be a rechartering ceremony, and the fraternity will be officially back on campus. As of now, there are no living plans for prospective members because the former Phi Delt chapter house is being rented by the Kappa Alpha fraternity while its house undergoes renovations.

Dralle said it is likely the chapter will eventually move back into its house, though there are no plans set in stone.

“We look forward to them reestablishing that Phi Delt brand,” Dralle said. “We can’t wait to get back to the original values and all the positives.” @newellmaggie angevims@miamioh.edu

6 CULTURE Seminar teaches students ‘Howe’ to spark social change

TUESDAY, OCTOBER 1, 2019

Talk the talk, CROP the walk GRACE KILLIAN

THE MIAMI STUDENT

JENNA CALDERÓN

THE MIAMI STUDENT On Saturday, Sept. 28, about 15 Miami students came together at the Howe Writing Center (HWC) for a workshop titled “Writing for Social Action: Local Issues, Local Practices.” There, they met and worked with professionals in writing and rhetoric to improve their writing skills and knowledge on local social action issues. They also learned how to meet their own personal social justice goals.

The workshop was divided into three hour-long segments where students could come and go as they saw fit.

“I really care about different ways people, and myself individually, can solve, or at least try to make progress with different social justice issues,” first-year theater major Alexandra Leurck said. “I’m really passionate about our environment in general. I’m on the EcoReps team and I’m also the EcoRep for my residence hall.”

Hosted by HWC Graduate Assistant Directors, Danielle Hart and Brenda Tyrrell, the event began with brief introductions from various student-based organizations focused on local social justice issues. These included Zero Waste Oxford, the Graduate Student Pride Association, Spectrum and the National Black Law Student Association.

Following the presentation of the organizations’ goals, attendees made their way to the Advanced Inquiry Space (AIS) room in King Library. Here, they worked to compose letters to editors as well as create zines, which are non-commercial, non-professional and self-published mini-magazines typically associated with counter-culture.

Stefanie Hilles, a librarian in the arts and humanities and a self-described zine connoisseur, talked about the importance of these crafts to social justice issues.

“I think that they’re an excellent way for people to get out their message,” Hilles said. “It’s a very user-friendly, low cost way.”

Students were given instruction and time to create their own personal zines centered around whatever social justice issue they felt most strongly about.

They were also offered a plethora of resources to continue their brainstorming process.

“I think it was a really interesting look into organizing students and their activism,” said Sebastian Pratt, a sophomore music composition and diplomacy and global politics double major. “It’s good to take students that have these awesome ideas and help direct them because I feel like students, a lot of times, don’t know how to do things or they think they can’t do things because they’re students, but we can.”

The last segment of the workshop was a recap of all the information and topics that had been covered. The staff ensured that all students would be leaving with a solid, work-in-progress plan for extending their personal social action ambitions.

“We would like people to see that there are other organizations that are working [against] systems of oppression, and that there are resources out there that they can utilize to create their own or add to their own social action work,” Tyrrell said.

“Just making a more cohesive and united stand instead of divided stand.”

By the end of the workshop, student-created zines decorated King Library’s AIS room.

The HWC Graduate Assistant Directors plan to hold workshops like these at least once every semester. For more information, visit the HWC website. calderjm@miamioh.edu

HEADLEDD@MIAMIOH.EDU

MIAMI GREEK LIFE SUCCESSFULLY CAPPED OFF THIS YEAR’S GREEK WEEK. THE MIAMI STUDENT OPHELIA ROSALES

On Saturday morning, over a thousand members of Greek life gathered at Uptown Park for CROP Walk, a 27-year-old tradition intended to bring awareness to world hunger, as well as hunger that affects Oxford directly.

Attendees dressed in running shorts and shirts sporting their Greek letters. Some sororities wore matching Greek Week shirts that were spotted as they mixed with other sorority and fraternity members.

With an 11 a.m. start, most people appeared tired, but cheered up as they run into friends. They talked and laughed while waiting for the walk to begin.

CROP stands for “Communities Responding to Overcome Poverty,” and it’s part of the Church World Service organizations. Proceeds are used both internationally and domestically to help people rise up out of poverty and to help local communities with disaster relief and refugee resettlement.

Under the pavilion, everyone dropped off cans of food in their designated area and scanned the QR code to check-in. Under the Gamma Phi Beta and Chi Omega signs, the stacks were high and thousands of cans were donated.

Pop music played as members of Tri-Council used the speakers to direct everyone where they need to be.

The cans collected will be donated to the Talawanda Oxford Food Pantry and Social Services (TOPSS). It’s the first year all food donations will be donated locally.

Tri-Council has a philanthropic mission to donate a quarter of a million dollars to TOPSS in the next three years. The money will be going toward a new building and food pantry.

Senior Olivia Groves, the VP of Programming for the Panhellenic community, worked with other members of the Tri-Council to plan Greek Week.

“Essentially, it’s a lot of behind the scenes logistics,” Groves said. “But most of the work comes around the week itself when we are creating the rules, organizing the teams, advertising the event, running the event the day of.”

Even though lots of work goes into planning Greek Week, Groves finds it rewarding.

“Greek week is one of the few

times a year the whole Greek community really comes together,” Groves said. “This community is so powerful if we all come together towards one goal and I think CROP walk shows this.”

The sun shone down as students began their mile-long walk around Oxford over the weekend.

Members chatted with one another while sipping water or coffee.

Sophomore Regan O’Brien, a member of Gamma Phi, was one of the walk’s many participants.

“It was a really great experience, bringing all the sororities and fraternities together for a really good cause and to get a little exercise on a Saturday morning,” O’Brien said.

Angela Weckle, a member of Alpha Omicron Pi, also participated in CROP walk.

“I thought it was very successful and a lot of fun,” Weckle said. “It was hot, but still fun and for a good cause.”

CROP walk is the final event of Greek Week, an entire week filled with events for Greek life members to participate in. From football to soccer, sororities and fraternities compete with one another to win the most challenges.

The more challenges a team wins, the more points they earn, and CROP walk is the last opportunity for points. Points are earned based on the number of members who show up and the number of cans donated.

After the walk, Gamma Phi was announced the 2019 Greek Week winner.

Uptown was full of people before and after the walk, with lines out the door at both Starbucks and Fridge and Pantry. Workers hustled to complete orders and keep customers happy. With so many customers, there was a delay as people were waiting for their food.

At Fridge and Pantry, they even gave out vouchers to customers who had been waiting.

Annika Backlund who works at Fridge and Pantry felt the rush of people as CROP walk ended.

“It’s usually not this busy early in the day,” Backlund said. “It [usually] gets busy around 1 p.m., but it’s been crazy. Everyone is in their sorority t-shirts so it’s easy to tell they came from CROP walk.”

As time passed, Uptown grew quiet as Greek members dispersed and traveled back home to get ready for the rest of the day. killiagc@miamioh.edu

I ain’t afraid of no ghost:

Debunking myths and solving mysteries since 2018

DON’T BE SCARED. JEB CARD TEACHES STUDENTS THE SCIENCE BEHIND THE PARANORMAL. THE MIAMI STUDENT LEANNE STAHULAK

LEANNE STAHULAK THE MIAMI STUDENT

Tarot cards. Rune stones. Electronic voice phenomenon recorders.

A Ouija board.

These items and more lay scattered across a table in the front of Upham 002, placed there by Jeb Card. The archeologist and assistant teaching professor brought this equipment in for his 5o students to examine and dabble with.

Exercises like these are typical on a Monday afternoon in ATH 190A: Investigating the Paranormal.

This anthropology sprint course challenges students to apply scientific and cultural approaches to the everyday myths and legends we’ve always wondered about: Atlantis, Bigfoot, Mothman and more. In just six weeks, students will learn not only how to identify and research a complex paranormal phenomenon, but also how they’d go about solving the mystery behind it.

Miami started offering this course in fall of 2018. For that semester, only 24 spots were available, and Card created a narrower experience for students, guiding them to

actually solve the mystery of Bigfoot by conducting experiments, studying historical records and creating films to study the creature’s biomechanics. But for its second time around, Card decided the course should focus on more practical skills that students can apply to their everyday lives.

“I’m trying to build up their critical thinking ideas,” Card said. “So, if you were given a moderate amount of research money, what would you really do? And I don’t mean what would you do to get on TV — what would you really, honestly do?”

Several students taking the one-credit class are first-years who either need extra credit hours or wanted to add a fun, interactive course to their schedule. First-year political science student Jett Young took the course under the recommendation of his academic advisor.

“I am just taking it for fun, but it’s going to teach us to ask questions from a different perspective, and that’s always good,” Young said.

On the other hand, junior anthropology major McKenna McGraw has taken classes with Card before, and she figured this would be a cool way to gain credit toward her major.

“It’s interesting because it’s a different take — it’s looking into the cultural reception of the paranormal,” McGraw said. “Just how myths and stories and stuff circulate through public consciousness.”

Already this semester, in addition to practicing using paranormal investigative equipment, students have learned about the scientific and cultural origins of the Atlantis myth, which is related to the Lost Continent of Mu in the middle of the Pacific Ocean. Card brought in four compressed volcanic artifacts (supposedly from the Lost Continent) along with “legitimate” artifacts, challenging students to determine how an artifact can feel “real” or different from a fraudulent object.

“I want them to become more skeptical about a lot of things,” Card said. “If somebody says something like, ‘This thing is true, isn’t it?’ Well, why? What’s the basis of it? Why are they saying that? Critical inquiry is an incredibly important life skill.”

For the last few sessions, the class will study cryptozoology in relation to colonialism, UFOs and the national security state and how all of the class topics together form a Paranormal Unified Field The-

ory. The theory contemplates the relationship between paranormal phenomena, institutions and social trust, and it will stand as the basis of students’ final project.

Students will have to construct a small grant proposal, as if they were legitimately seeking funds for an investigation into one of the weird myths surrounding the Ohio Valley. They’ll have several myths to choose from including Mothman, the Kentucky goblins, the Loveland Frogmen, various haunted castles and the possibility of UFOs hidden at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base.

The course and final project may focus a lot on the scientific side of the paranormal, but Card doesn’t want students to forget that all myths have cultural roots as well.

“That’s one of the big lessons in anthropology: How can you develop an anthropological perspective?”

Card said. “One where you look at what other people value and don’t just discount it because it’s not what you value, and figure out why they value it. That’s an incredibly important worldview.” stahullc@miamioh.edu

CULTURE 7

TUESDAY, OCTOBER 1, 2019

DATTILEC@MIAMIOH.EDU

HUMANS OF OXFORD

He doesn’t just speak for the trees ...

CHLOE MURDOCK

THE MIAMI STUDENT Charles Ford is not on this earth to convince you to care for it. In an ideal world, science and data would do that for him.

But he is here to make the world a more eco-friendly place, one backyard at a time.

Property owners looking to care for their landscapes while restoring native ecosystems are drawn to his company, Songbird Environmental, by word of mouth. With the right plants and care, bare yards and scraped-over woodlands can become optimized homes for bees, butterflies and, yes, songbirds like Charles’ favorite: goldfinches.

Charles thinks Oxford is uniquely poised to see the rise of positive environmental change.

“If any small town in the world can make a difference, Oxford can be one of those,” he said.

The company is a family affair.

Songbird started in their garage with a logo, designed by Charles’ son Duncan, slapped on the side of a used Ford F-150 in 2011. Now, nine employees serve nine nearby counties in Ohio and Indiana.

Charles has roots in both states.

He grew up exploring the woods until suppertime in Connersville, Indiana. He started visiting Oxford when it was still legal for 18-yearolds to buy a single beer in town.

In 1976, he graduated from Purdue University with a degree in forestry. Charles remembers a run-

A FRIEND TO ALL BACKYARDS, CHARLES FORD HELPS OXFORD RESIDENTS MAKE THE MOST OF THEIR LAND. THE MIAMI STUDENT DAKOTA SKINNER

ning joke from that year about the United States churning out enough forestors to “man every McDonald’s” in the country. He worked for his father’s manufacturing company instead.

A customer later bought that company and brought Charles on before he gradually bought 100 percent of its stock.

After building and managing an 80-strong employee base, Charles

sold the company and moved with his family to Oxford in 2005.

“He’s a creator of solutions,” Tami Ford, a retired financial professional, Charles’ wife and Songbird’s bookkeeper, said.

Charles found his way back to his own environmentally-friendly strain of forestry by concentrating in environmental science for a master’s degree before starting Songbird in 2011.

Charles weaves his hand like a meandering stream when he describes his life.

“Life stories kinda go like this,” Charles said.

Regardless, his regrets are minimal. Charles and Tami, who Charles says is “the only person I’ve ever loved,” have been married for 40 years. He’s writing stories specifically for his grandson based on his two kids’ childhoods, and his son Duncan will illustrate them when he finishes.

While thinking of the possibilities, Charles said, “Wow, we had a great time!”

But honeysuckle, an invasive species overtaking native plants in Hueston Woods, is one thing that makes his easy smile drop.

“We could cure it, but we have no political will to cure it,” Charles said.

Charles supported global climate change protests on Sept. 20 but did not participate. He and Tami hadn’t heard about Miami’s protest until afterward.

Charles wasn’t too disappointed.

He did what he could when he went to work. @chloeannmurdock murdocc3@miamioh.edu

DESPITE NOT ALWAYS HITTING THE TARGET, ARCHERY CLUB MEMBERS ENJOY THE EXPERIENCE. THE MIAMI STUDENT ZACH REICHMAN

Colorful culture, creative crafts at 6th annual Chinese Festival GABBY KOVACHICH THE MIAMI STUDENT

On the warm evening of Friday, Sept. 27, the Miami University Confucius Institute (CIMU) hosted the 6th annual Chinese Festival to celebrate Chinese culture and language. The Oxford Uptown Park was alive with rich colors, beautiful music and fascinating traditions of Chinese culture.

The annual festival welcomes everyone to explore and enjoy the different aspects of the culture. According to the event’s organizers, the festival also promotes the celebration of diversity and intercultural connection among Miami faculty and students, as well as the Oxford community.

“We love to help people get to know

our culture,” senior kinesiology major Diwen Chen said. “We do our best to promote diversity.”

Diwen has been a student volunteer at the Chinese Festival for the past two years, and this year he ran a booth where people were encouraged to try on traditional Chinese costumes and learn about their history and significance.

Many Miami students choose to participate in the event as both volunteers and performers to represent their culture. Some of the performances that took center-stage on Friday included an elaborate and elegant fan dance, musical melodies played on the Chinese zheng harp and a captivating performance by a martial arts master.

The opening performance of the night was a traditional Chinese lion dance, a dance in which performers

are dressed and masked in incredibly colorful lion costumes and mimic the movements of the lion to symbolize power, wisdom and superiority. The lion dance is meant to bring prosperity and luck, and is especially important during the Chinese New Year’s celebration.

First-year data science and statistics major Rafid Pranto said the lion dance was his favorite part of the Chinese festival.

“Chinese culture — it’s huge and colorful,” Pranto said. “Chinese culture plays a significant role in the overall diversity at Miami University.”

Pranto is an international student from Dhaka, Bangladesh, a country in South Asia, and he talked about his experience as an international student at Miami.

“I have never felt out of place or unwelcome here,” Pranto said. “However, [the university] should exert itself more to increase the diversity.”

One of the goals of the institute is to promote diversity by celebrating and sharing knowledge of Chinese culture.

Activities at the festival included language learning, panda mask making and Chinese paper-cutting, one of the most popular and important types of Chinese folk art.

Chinese paper-cuts are usually done with red paper because red is associated with festivities and happiness.

Paper-cuts are sometimes referred to as window paper-cuts because people will often glue them to windows so the light from inside will illuminate the negative space in the art.

Along with activities, the festival also had cultural booths where people could learn about different Chinese games, the beauty and history of the Beijing Opera and even how to properly use chopsticks to eat the free food that was offered at the festival.

“The food was great, and using chopsticks was a new experience for me

but I’m glad I tried it,” first-year university studies major Lisa Arcure said. She said she is looking forward to attending the Chinese festival again next September.

This year’s Chinese Festival also celebrated the 40th anniversary of diplomatic relations between the United States and China. A large photo exhibit displayed at the front of the festival depicted significant political moments and honored the diplomatic journey over the past decades between the two nations.

Both Oxford Mayor Kate Rousmaniere, and Chen Zhao, the director of the Confucius Institute, spoke of the importance of the cultural and diplomatic connections between China and the United States before the beginning of the performances on Friday.

The CIMU aims to enhance multicultural harmony in the Oxford and Miami communities, and is proud to be the first Confucius Institute in Ohio set up in conjunction with the Chinese Language Council International (Hanban). kovachg3@miamioh.edu

“Chinese culture — it’s huge and colorful.”

- first-year Rafid Pranto ON FRIDAY, UPTOWN PARK WAS FILLED WITH SIGHTS AND SOUNDS FROM ACROSS THE GLOBE. THE MIAMI STUDENT ABBY BAMMERLIN

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FRANCONC@MIAMIOH.EDU

Hi, my name is Nina.

Now, tell me about your closet.

TUESDAY, OCTOBER 1, 2019

What is a VSCO girl?

The trend taking social media by storm.

STYLE EDITOR NINA FRANCO

NINA FRANCO STYLE EDITOR

My favorite piece of clothing from my closet is a 50s-style yellow dress with a full-skirt and a tight bodice. I’ve worn it on exactly two occasions. Once to my high school baccalaureate mass, and the other to my sister’s eighth grade graduation brunch. At that brunch, the zipper broke as soon as I exited the car. And, I am not going to lie, I had a bit of a fit. After all, this was my favorite dress.

Within the week, my mom had the dress taken to the dry cleaners and was able to get the zipper fixed.

I felt like an epic drama queen.

That same dress is still hanging in my closet at home, even though I am pretty sure I can’t breathe in it anymore. I hold onto it because it reminds me of a certain time in my life when I felt happy and ready to begin a new chapter of my life. I said goodbye to all my best friends from high school in that dress.

And I think everyone can relate to that sense of nostalgia. Everyone has that one dress in their closet.

Our personal styles mean so much to every one of us, even if we don’t always sport it in the most trendy or lavish ways. Our style is the product of our ever-changing environments.

As The Student’s new style editor, I hope to give our audience some insight about how Miami has shaped the way we dress and personify ourselves — for better or worse — because my style has been affected by it firsthand.

My friends at home would describe me as preppy. But at school, I am a culprit of the fast-growing luxury athleisure trend and am constantly trying to keep with the “Uptown looks” on the weekends.

Either way, I am happy I moved away from my middle school Limited-Too gauchos and Abercrombie graphic-tees.

This move has been for the good of everyone, I assure you.

While Urban Dictionary defines “style” as either “what people think is ‘cool’” or in its plural form, the last name of the “one and only Harold Edward Styles,” I would much rather leave that definition up to you: How you choose to express yourself because of, or in spite of, the environment around you, is not the same as mine.

So, now this is where I call on you to tell me about your style. It can be anything — from your obsession with a new fashion trend, your disdain for another or your personal experience. I want to know what style means to the Miami community. Because while many college ranking and review sites would still like to define us as “J. Crew U,” I have met just as many people who don’t subscribe to that stereotype as the ones who do.

Writing a piece for the Style section doesn’t mean you need to be a trendy queen or king.

In fact, you may be in desperate need of a Queer Eye makeover.

But everyone’s closet has a story, and I can’t wait to tour yours. franconc@miamioh.edu

“Everyone has that one dress in their closet ... “

VSCO GIRLS DESPERATELY WANT TO “SAVE THE TURTLES.” ILLUSTRATOR ANNA SKALICKI

SARAH GRACE HAYS THE MIAMI STUDENT

First-year Tori Rammelsberg first posted a photo of her intricate makeup look on VSCO in 2018. Since then, she has continued to post on the photography app regularly.

But now, this artistic individual with a knack for photography struggles to stray away from the label society has given girls like Rammelsberg who use the app.

The app, formerly used for artistic photography, has been flooded with scrunchies, Birkenstocks and Fjallraven Kanken backpacks.

While most of these brands have been popular for several years, put

BRIAN MCDONALD

THE MIAMI STUDENT From first through eighth grade, I attended a Catholic school that required a strict uniform: white polo shirt, khaki pants and brown or black shoes. And for those eight years, my sense of fashion told a story of imprisonment and boredom. And, when I eventually graduated and attended a public high school, I felt like I was being thrown to the wolves.

Don’t get me wrong, I wasn’t showing up to class looking like a slob my freshman year, but I may or may not have owned a pair of green plaid Sperrys that I would match with my black Reebok ankle socks and cargo shorts.

In short, I was a lost dog in desperate need of an episode of Stacy London’s “What Not to Wear” advice. I started to make a point to be more in-tune with what my peers were wearing for the first time, which led to my first Uptown outfit in college: Khaki shorts A plain Ralph Lauren tee White Nike half calf socks … and white canvas tennis shoes And even though nothing was technically required I still felt like I was back in middle school, dressed in uniform, with every other man on campus.

I was highly influenced by everyone around me and as the year went by, my wardrobe filled with Lululemon, button-downs and Comfort Color t-shirts. At the time, I don’t think I dressed in those clothes because I particularly liked them. It just felt easy and comfortable and a way for me to fit in with the crowd.

Because when you’re a first-year, you often don’t look to stand out.

Now, as a senior, when I look back at my time here at Miami and the community I have built,

together they form the ingredients for the internet’s latest aesthetic: “VSCO girl.”

Since the trend first took off, Rammelsberg has seen more and more heavily-edited photos of Hydro Flasks and cowry shell necklaces on her VSCO feed.

But VSCO isn’t new.

The app has been around since 2011. However, the label “VSCO girl,” and the lifestyle it implies, has only just begun.

This trend first made headlines last summer, from Instagram to newly trendy, lip-sync app Tik Tok. And its target demographic seems to be Generation Z, with 75 percent of VSCO users reported to be under

the age of 25, VSCO Vice President of Communications, Julie Inoyue said in an NBC News interview.

These Gen Zers associate themselves with Brandy Melville fashion, a clothing brand based out of Italy. The brand features one-size only clothing, with everything from metal heart belts to Rolling Stone graphic tees.

Girls often try to emulate the models depicted on the brand’s Instagram feed.

VSCO girls’ fashion choices are central to their persona, but another important aspect to the aesthetic is their propensity for environmentally friendly brands and products.

The motto — for many of these girls — is something along the lines of, “Save the turtles.”

To cut down on ocean pollution, many VSCO girls are featured on the social media site using metal straws and Hydroflasks, which are insulated stainless steel water bottles.

While any actions made to improve the environment are usually viewed positively, many college students believe VSCO girls are playing up their “green image” to their feed.

“They are piggybacking off people who actually care,” first-year Karis Gladieux said.

These negative connotations have caused some girls to associate VSCO with “being fake,” and turned them off from the app.

But others could not care less.

“VSCO is for actual photographers and artsy people,” first-year Oliver Brenner said.

Brenner posts on VSCO about once a month and doesn’t understand the relationship between the trend and the app.

But VSCO girls aren’t solely relegated to posting pictures of their outfit or the latest green accessory. They also take photos of remodeled closets or small spaces labeled, “VSCO hangouts.” These hangouts can be classified as aesthetically pleasing areas, typically adorned with some sort of tapestry and string lights.

But with this new wave of VSCO trends, Gen Zers like Rammelsberg post less on the app so as not to be caught up in the VSCO girl trend.

The fear of being seen as “inauthentic” has strayed some girls on Miami’s campus away from the growing trend, even if they are interested in some of the styles portrayed on these accounts.

Rammelsberg, who posts on VSCO once a week, said that, “to be labeled a VSCO girl is the same as being labeled a frat boy”— both have big reputations, neither can be ignored.

While some give VSCO girls a bad rap, it certainly has received a lot of

media attention.

Several outlets have discussed the VSCO girl trend, and it has become a well-known joke on many social media feeds. So, while those who strive to be authentic in their daily lives may scoff at the trend, they can’t deny that it is receiving a lot of attention: Vox, Rolling Stone and even NBC have taken a shot at trying to make sense of the trend.

While Brenner believes that some of the profiles that subscribe to the trends are “stupid,” he still mocks the aesthetic on Instagram and Tik Tok because it has become so relevant.

One of the biggest sticking points people regularly mock VSCO girls for is their use of the phrase “and I oop,” quoting a recent viral clip taken from a drag queen’s YouTube video.

The term is supposed to be used in unexpected situations, like when you drop a water bottle on the ground.

But many Tik Tok users make fun of VSCO girls by filming themselves exclaiming, “And I oop,” as they drop a Hydroflask.

Because the trend has gained so much notoriety through social media, many people have become more selfaware about their personal style.

Gladieux, the first-year who doesn’t care for the app, has a collection of scrunchies simply because they work better for her hair, but she does not want to be classified as a VSCO girl.

Gladieux even has two Kanken backpacks, but she does not subscribe to the slang or style of the VSCO girls in any other way.

“They are piggybacking off people who actually care,” first-year Karis Gladieux

And while the trend has lasted through the summer, Rammelsberg and others anticipate that it will disappear as quickly as it surfaced, leaving VSCO to return to its creative roots as an outlet for the artistic community. haysg@miamioh.edu

Fashion tells YOUR story my wardrobe has become more of a reflection of who I am — not the person I thought first-year me had to be.

But I would say I truly stepped out in fashion when I stepped out of the closet.

Coming to Miami, I didn’t want anyone to make a judgment about me before I even began my time as a student. And personally, the first impression isn’t what you say or do, but how you present yourself.

In this way, I found that a lot of my personality and sense of style was muted because I was so shy about my sexuality.

Now before this gets too sappy, fashion clearly isn’t something I thought would change when I came out as gay, but as I became more and more comfortable with Miami, I felt like I needed to show the real me.

In the words of Lady Gaga, I consider myself “talented, brilliant, incredible, amazing, show-stopping, spectacular, never the same, totally unique, completely not ever been done before … ” And, by that I mean I have two moods. If you see me on campus at 11 a.m. on a Tuesday, you are seeing a very different person than the man at 11 p.m. dancing in Brick Street on a Thursday night.

For example, on an average Tuesday I can be found sporting a pair of black Lululemon shorts, a sorority date party tee and white tennis shoes. But come Thursday, I will be happily strolling the Brick Street patio in cuffed light wash Levis, a Resort collar button-down and my not-so-white high-top Converse.

But whether it’s small changes

AFTER YEARS OF FEELING LIKE HE WAS WEARING A STRANGER’S WARDROBE, BRIAN FOUND HIMSELF AFTER EXAMINING HIS CLOSET. THE MIAMI STUDENT SAKSHAM SHRESTHA

or split worlds, fashion can help you build your personality and brand.

Sometimes I think it would be easier if I went back to a uniform because I wouldn’t have to think so much … but there is simply no better feeling than wearing clothes that show who YOU are!

And if that’s an oversized flannel to tell the story of how hungover you are while writing this article for The Miami Student or a crisp button-down shirt because you know your girlfriend will be proud of you

for “dressing up,” let your clothes speak for you.

The moment I started wearing clothes that reflected my personality, instead of the people around me, I felt more visible.

So if you want to dress up for a class or dress down for Brick, DO IT! At the end of the day, no one cares but you.

IG: bmac1492 mcdonab3@miamioh.edu

FRANCONC@MIAMIOH.EDU

What are men on Miami’s campus wearing?

Lululemon.

ELIZABETH FIOCCA THE MIAMI STUDENT

What’s trending in men’s fashion on Miami University’s campus?

You may not have guessed it, but luxury athleisure, and it’s main brand ambassador, Lululemon, dominate the streets of Oxford.

I was determined to find out why.

Originally a clothing line for female yogis, Lululemon specializes in technical athletic apparel that has become the go-to brand for male students. Lululemon provides quality product while emphasizing the customer experience through integrity, balance, entrepreneurship, greatness and fun, according to the company’s mission.

Seniors Luke Dillon and Steve Wainz are both proud of their Lulu collections and the way they accessorize the brand with shoes and hats from different stores.

But, more importantly, athleisure allows them to dress on auto-pilot. They don’t have to think about what they’re wearing because it’s easy, comfortable and accessible.

Plus, the brand itself isn’t flashy or boldly plastered across the front of t-shirts and athletic shorts, unlike brands such as UnderArmor, Nike or Adidas from more affordable outlets like TJMaxx, Marshall’s or Target.

“Those [brands] aren’t made for leisure wear,” Wainz argued. “They are more for working out. There is more utility with Lululemon.”

In recent years, Miami fashion has significantly transformed. Students are leaving familiar “preppy” trends in their closets at

ABIGAIL PADGETT

THE MIAMI STUDENT The Chunky Sneaker. The Dad Tennis Shoe. The Fila. Since the emergence of the big sneaker trend about two years ago, there has been a considerable amount of debate surrounding this reemerging look.

Is it kind of … cool?

Or does it need to die?

There seems to be no middle ground. Some people get excited to strap on their overlarge, overweight kicks. Others would rather save themselves the pain of looking back on photos, cringing at their dinosaur feet.

Miami University, like many other college campuses, has a particular brand of chunky.

A rare few students sport the bulky, high end Balenciaga and Prada kicks (which top out at over a grand a pop), but the majority stick to the blinding white Fila or the knock off designer-looking soles that Zara crafts to near-perfection.

But not everyone is excited about this latest campus “kick.”

“I just don’t really understand why something that was sold at Walmart and worn by your father to cut the lawn is something that girls are wearing,” senior Kevin Hansbauer said.

“And guys, too,” he added with a grimace.

To Hansbauer’s dismay, students (and the general public) are buying these sneakers in bulk. Just look around classes or in the bars Uptown: These sneakers — along with the newly platformed Doc Martens combat boots — run (pun intended) Oxford’s shoe gamut.

But, as Hansbauer explains, it’s more than just the aesthetic that bothers him about this clunky trend.

“Fila and Champion, these brands were perceived as cheap, Walmart brands, and now they are being marked up way more than they

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TUESDAY, OCTOBER 1, 2019

home.

“I remember wearing my Patagonia vest all the time freshman year,” Wainz said.

Not anymore.

“I’m a big hoodie guy now,” Dillon said.

Before they came to Miami, both expected to conform to the preppy stereotype that influenced the way they dressed in high school — college polos and khakis commanded his wardrobe.

“Freshman year, I was super preppy. I wore a lot of J. Crew because I went to a Catholic school and their pants were so comfortable and fit me well,” Wainz said.

The clothes fit the preppy stigma Wainz

thought he had to conform to.

But after a few weekends going to Uptown, he realized the typical “going-out” outfit, consisting of button downs, J. Crew shorts and loafers was impractical. He needed clothes to adapt to his new college lifestyle.

Plus, the rotation from class, gym, library and bars does not leave time for thoughtful styling.

“I don’t really care much about what I wear anymore,” Dillon said. “I have so many clothes here, but I wear the same thing all the time.”

Wearing stretchy gym shorts to class is not a new concept for men in college, but at Miami, guys are willing to dish out more money for comfort than previous generations because no other brand gives them the versatility.

Dillon agrees, that versa-

tility allowed him to wear Lulu clothes over the summer while working at an internship in Austin, Texas and believes that “our generation is defined by stretchy pants.”

Who would have thought a Canadian women’s athletic line would find its way to the workplace?

But men’s Lululemon apparel has different levels of athleisure. Sporty polos and jogger pants make for a polished look that is also comfy and the product line is universal.

Both Dillon and Wainz proudly wear their Lululemon in class and when they head to the bars.

Before going out with his friends, Wainz chills out in his apartment.

“I call it t-shirt time,” he explained. “I’ll wear my Lulu shorts and a regular tee before, but when I’m ready to go, I throw on my fresh shirt and always change my shoes.”

He discovered the change was necessary after his khaki shorts and loafers were destroyed by the grime of Oxford bars.

But Lululemon is not an investment all Miami students are willing to make.

While Dillon and Wainz “don’t mind the price point,” because “they have great customer service,” it’s not worth it for students who can’t afford the luxury athleisure trend.

Junior Stephen Levy doesn’t see the point.

“For exercise clothing, I wear really cheap stuff,” he explained. “Because, it is usually something I just sweat in anyway.”

Levy buys his own clothes, with advice from his parents and girlfriend, which usually consists of American Eagle for casual wear, but he’s more willing to spend money on formal clothing brands like Ralph Lauren.

“When I think of Lululemon, I think of girls yoga pants,” Levy said. “So, as a guy, I just don’t seem to gravitate towards the brand.”

But, for many Miami guys, it is not just an exercise clothing brand, but a lifestyle.

“I HAVE SO MANY CLOTHES HERE, BUT I WEAR THE SAME THING ALL THE TIME.” ILLUSTRATOR MIN KIM

fioccaer@miamioh.edu

Goodbye, Fila should be when it’s literally the same product,” he said. “But now that it’s trendy, [the sneakers] can be sold for a lot more.”

And it’s true.

After making their first appearance in the ‘90s, Fila slowly lost its relevance in the fashion world as the trend died out, along with the company’s revenue. Then, Fila (a company with an Italian heritage, but based in Baltimore) was sold to a Korean firm where it reinvented and rebranded itself.

Cut to a few years ago: The new Fila sought to revamp its image as a retro ‘90s dad sneaker after it was taken from its dusty shoebox in the back of the closet and thrust back into public view.

Suddenly, Fila is connecting with a young-

er audience through collaborations with stores like Urban Outfitters. If that isn’t evidence of how quickly Fila has catapulted itself in recent years, the brand just completed its Spring/Summer 2020 collection, a fashion show with a runway and all, at Milan Fashion Week last month.

“Yeah, they’re white, so they’re versatile, but I just don’t feel like that style goes with anything else except for really, really urban streetwear,” Hansbauer said. “They don’t go with the dresses and skirts that girls are wearing them with.”

But senior Whitney Reddan disagrees entirely.

“I really liked the trend because it covered three bases for me,” she explained. “One, I

like a good white sneaker; two, it’s super comfortable and three, it’s a platform.”

Maybe the chunky sneakers and companies like Fila — brands that were never meant to make a comeback — are a rebellion against fashion norms, and the level to which a brand can rebrand itself while taking over global street style trends with kooky footwear like the big sneaker.

But even though Reddan enjoys the trend, she agrees it may have hit its peak.

“I think initially they were fun and cool,” she said. “[But] now that most people have them, the trend has died out for me.”

She paused before adding, “I do love all the jokes about them.”

And however admirable this bounce back may be, the chunky sneaker is still a trend — and in the way that trends so quickly come and go in our era of fast fashion — it needs to make a final lap before it calls it quits.

Enough is enough, I say.

IG: abspadgett padgetac@miamioh.edu

“I just don’t really understand why something that was sold at Walmart and worn by your father to cut the lawn is something that girls are wearing ... ” - senior Kevin Hansbauer

Sports

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TUESDAY, OCTOBER 1, 2019

Chris Bergeron outlines vision for Miami hockey

CHRIS BERGERON SIGNED ON AS THE SIXTH HEAD HOCKEY COACH IN MIAMI HISTORY ON APRIL 5. THE MIAMI STUDENT MATT HECKERT

MICHAEL NAMORATO THE MIAMI STUDENT

Fans of RedHawk hockey eagerly await the start to the new season every fall, and they have every rea-

son to be impatient this year. There will be a new voice overheard on the Miami bench this season, and that voice belongs to Chris Bergeron.

Bergeron, originally from Wallaceburg, Ontario, Canada, is no

stranger to hockey at Miami University. He spent four years as a RedHawk where he was a conference champion and a two-year captain.

Bergeron came back to Oxford as an assistant for 10 years under former coach Enrico Blasi. During that span, the RedHawks went 226139-37 with six NCAA tournament appearances, a national title game appearance and two conference championships.

After his tenure as an assistant at Miami, Bergeron became the head coach of the Bowling Green Falcons.

During his nine years with the Falcons, he turned a five-win team the year prior to his hiring into a program with 20 or more wins in his last five seasons there.

So what does coaching mean to Bergeron? “[It’s] the next best thing to playing,” he said.

Now, it seems that Bergeron’s coaching story, in a way, comes full circle. Bergeron admits that making the move from an assistant to taking on a program brought a lot of uncertainty and different challenges. Yet, those experiences and the ones he had as a player have prepared him for this new challenge.

Marty Brennaman’s retirement ends summer and our sports editor’s childhood CHRIS VINEL

SPORTS EDITOR I was probably 3 or 4 the first time I heard what I hope to be the voice of God. Or, at least, that’s what I like to say — half joking, half serious.

My dad drove. I sat in a booster seat behind him as we rode around the Price Hill neighborhood of Cincinnati in his gold 1972 Oldsmobile Cutlass. The sun shone, and the car’s convertible top was down. My dad tuned the staticky, old radio to 700 WLW, and I heard Marty Brennaman call a Reds baseball game for the first time I can remember.

It’s one of my first memories.

My age sets the year right around 2002 or 2003, almost 30 years into Brennaman’s tenure as the play-byplay announcer of the Cincinnati Reds and the de facto voice of the city itself.

He retired last Thursday after 46 iconic seasons.

He connected Cincinnati fans with their favorite team for nearly five decades, articulated the Reds’ three most recent world championship victories and was appropriately placed in the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 2000.

In Cincinnati, he earned firstname status. No one in the city calls him his full name. He’s simply “Marty.”

In my life, I’ve spent more time listening to Marty than anyone else, bar my family members.

My dad was 7 when Marty announced his first Reds game. I was 7 when I became a baseball fan, and Marty has everything to do with that.

Along with my dad, he taught me the game.

During his season-long retirement tour, Marty said, “I’ve put more people to sleep than you could shake a stick at.”

For me, he was correct.

My mom enforced an 8:30 p.m. bedtime for much of my childhood.

Many nights, I lugged a blue radio that looked like a boombox with rounded corners to the edge of my bed and flipped on 700 WLW. My mom always knew.

Sometimes, she stopped me.

Sometimes, she pretended she didn’t hear it, so I could have my fun.

I always tried to hold off my sleepiness until Marty’s signature “... and this one belongs to the Reds” tagline.

I rarely made it to the end, dozing off and waking only to power off the radio as Marty signed off, “So long, everybody.”

Until I was 12, I had a great-grandma who lived in Middletown, Ohio.

Because of the 45-minute drive from my family’s house to hers, my brothers and I lovingly referred to her as “Grandma Far Away.” She spent almost every Sunday with my family.

When we visited her, we’d arrived to the Reds game on the television in her front room or the radio in her kitchen.

When we picked her up from Middletown, I always volunteered to go with my parents. It meant more time with grandma and more time with Marty. I often fell asleep while taking her home on Sunday evenings, as my grandma’s and parents’ murmurs and Marty’s smooth pronunciations slid into my dreams.

Spring training in February brought along the best time of year.

I’d move the blue radio from the top of my dresser down to my floor and sit right by it, as Marty led me from the first pitch to the last.

Each July, I’d beg my parents to leave our annual Florida vacation at certain times. I tried to align the time we’d reach WLW’s signal in Tennessee with the start of the night’s Reds broadcast, allowing Marty to welcome us back to town.

My dad and I talked Reds together and always had the game on in the car.

He followed Marty’s “there’s a high drive” home-run shout with his own “all right!” and a high-five for me.

Even now, my friends and I recite

our favorite Marty calls from memory.

I remember exactly where I was for most of them.

Ken Griffey Jr.’s 500th and 600th home runs, a 2006 Adam Dunn walk-off grand slam, Jay Bruce’s division-clinching blast in 2010 and Joey Votto’s 2012 Mother’s Day grand slam winner.

Those are only the ones from my lifetime. I listened to Marty for only a third of his Reds career. But no one has ever told me I missed his prime.

He was at his best last Thursday, just like any other game that happened 10, 20, 30 or 45 years ago. I wasn’t shortchanged.

Marty was on the radio the first time I drove a car. He kept me from crying on the way home from my first-ever breakup. He rode with me to friends’ houses and home from school.

I studied every one of his broadcasts I could find on YouTube before making my debut as a baseball playby-play announcer on RedHawk Radio. I even bought a transistor radio, so I could listen to him in my dorm room.

Birthdays, holidays, graduation parties, average Tuesdays and everything in between, he was there.

Despite that, I’ve never met him.

Last year, when I shadowed Fox Sports Ohio’s Chris Welsh for a day, I came within 20 feet of doing so.

Welsh asked if I wanted to meet Marty. I started walking toward the WLW radio booth before “yes” made it past my lips.

Welsh opened the door. Marty stood in the middle of a group of people. He, of course, was telling stories as the center of attention. Everyone smiled.

I didn’t, as Welsh said, “Ope, he’s busy,” and shut the door.

On Thursday, when Marty finished his last broadcast and closed the door on his career, I cried. @ChrisAVinel vinelca@miamioh.edu

“And that, as they say, is that.”

-Marty Brennaman

’Hawks Talk “How about the student body come to home games instead of our OSU game, wearing a shirt that has a comment that our coach made about a power five team we were facing. Y’all would rather wear a shirt to OSU trying to mock our team to get a few likes or laughs. Pathetic.”

⁃⁃ senior defensive back Bart Baratti tweeting about a shirt featuring Chuck Martin’s “first 85 picks” quote

“It was a special call for me and my family,” Bergeron said.

Returning to Oxford has been “surreal” for Bergeron.

He had mixed emotions when Miami first approached him about the job.

While he empathized with Blasi, a friend and former teammate, he understood what it meant to come back to Oxford. But his return to campus, however, is not just a welcoming party.

The RedHawks have a tough task ahead of them. The National Colllegiate Hockey Conference is one of the most challenging leagues in all of collegiate hockey. With programs like St. Cloud State, North Dakota, Minnesota-Duluth and Denver, being crowned conference champion has continued to prove a challenge.

But will Miami hockey be able to rise to that challenge?

“Why not?” Bergeron asked.

Even though Miami hasn’t met expectations the last few years, Bergeron does not want fans to get discouraged. He believes in the group in the locker room and the coaching staff, and he knows they are ready to go up against any opponent.

Bergeron also knows just how important the student body and fans are to the team. And he has one message for fans eager for the start of the season.

“We are going to play hard, have fun and make you proud,” Bergeron said.

He knows what the fans expect from the team, and more importantly, he knows that he can make this team and this program successful. The focus is not on the past or on building a dynasty.

“The focus is on this year and this group of guys, the 2019-2020 team,” Bergeron said.

The team’s chemistry is still formulating, but Bergeron knows that chemistry will be cemented once his players fight through adversity together on the ice.

The RedHawks’ first game of the new season will be at Goggin Ice Center on Sunday, October 6, against Bergeron’s former team, Bowling Green. While it will be a great atmosphere for fans and a unique experience for Bergeron, this Miami hockey team has no plans to step off the gas. @mnamorato26 namoramc@miamioh.edu

Saturday’s Chuck Martin is what Miami football needs

NOW IN HIS SIXTH SEASON AS HEAD MAN IN OXFORD, CHUCK MARTIN IS ALWAYS VERY VOCAL WITH HIS PLAYERS AT PRACTICE. THE MIAMI STUDENT ZACH REICHMAN

CHRIS VINEL

SPORTS EDITOR Saturday showed the Chuck Martin the 2019 Miami RedHawks need.

At his postgame press conference, he got choked up. He says he’s proud of his RedHawks after every win.

Martin’s words often feel empty, like a point he’s mandated to make.

Not Saturday.

He was vulnerable and said he loved his players.

After he regained his composure, Martin smiled through much of the next 15 minutes.

He sounded inspirational when he described his team’s mindset as it climbed out of a 14-3 second-quarter hole.

He laughed at dumb questions — you can guess which reporter asked one.

He praised the fans in attendance for bringing some energy instead of calling them “idiots.”

Most importantly, he didn’t offer excuses.

Fifteen days ago, Martin provided the media a viral quote ahead of his team’s matchup with Ohio State.

“It’s kind of like going to recess, and they have the first 85 picks,” he said of the Buckeyes.

He had also used a paraphrased version of the same sentence two years ago when his team traveled to Notre Dame.

No one noticed the first time he said it, but two weeks ago, oof, it was not pretty.

Fans were mad, Miami students made t-shirts featuring the quote and Martin’s own players liked tweets criticizing his words.

It looked bad, almost as if he was writing his team off for an embarrassing loss five days before actually playing the game.

Was he factually wrong? That’s a question for another column, but the final score was 76-5.

Was he mentally wrong for saying it? Let’s just say it’s something that never would have left the mouth of Miami men’s basketball coach Jack Owens, someone known to give stereotypically bland coach answers, but always backs his players.

But Martin was different last Saturday.

In his press conference, he gave nothing but positive soundbites. He verbally put himself in the trenches with his team instead of commanding it from above.

In the game, he gave Miami its best chance to win.

After a three-and-out on their opening drive, the RedHawks went back to what made them successful in the first quarter at Ohio State.

Martin and his staff’s play-calling is often questioned. Last weekend against Buffalo, they turned past the first page of the playbook and sifted through the whole thing. Apparently, they found a few gems.

Speed options, jet sweeps, play-actions, wide receiver passes and more.

Some worked and some didn’t, but it gave his team a boost of momentum and an aura of unpredictability. Even with Miami’s passing game struggling, its offense didn’t turn to two-yards-and-a-cloud-ofdust football like it did the last three quarters at Ohio State.

For one week, Martin’s adjustments, both on the field and off, should be applauded. His team responded. He and his players earned a victory they so desperately needed.

A 1-4 start would’ve been crippling — 2-3 isn’t too shabby.

Another rebounding run through the Mid-American Conference could be in order.

Martin just has to be who he was Saturday. Hopefully, his team follows suit. @ChrisAVinel vinelca@miamioh.edu

VINELCA@MIAMIOH.EDU

SPORTS 11

TUESDAY, OCTOBER 1, 2019

Senior tuba player has ‘special day’ at Ohio State LUKAS NELSON

Although band takes up a lot of Farahay’s time, she isn’t a music major — she actually is working on a biology and environmental science double major.

It’s common among Miami’s marching band, where the majority of members are non-music majors.

“She kind of embodies what a lot of our band looks like, where they’re not all music ed. majors.” Johnson said. “In fact, 80 percent of them are from majors all over campus.”

Farahay has been a co-section leader of the tubas since last year. Part of a section leader’s duties include running sectionals, a time for instrument groups to work separately on their music. For Farahay and the rest of the tubas, sectionals also include non-music activities.

“We like to get some extra stretches in because we tend to get pretty sore carrying the sousaphone around.” Farahay said.

“So we always do a little bit of yoga.”

Johnson likes to give freedom to the section leaders to run sections however they see fit.

“Some students really take to that better than others,” Johnson said. “Emma is one of the people that they really take that sectional time and run with it.”

Last Saturday, the Miami band performed at Ohio Stadium for the Ohio State vs. Miami football game. During the band’s pregame show, it morphed into a formation that looks like the state of Ohio.

During this, one tuba player gets to stand approximately where Oxford would be in

THE MIAMI STUDENT

A TUBA PLAYER SINCE SIXTH GRADE, EMMA FARAHAY THANKS HER GRANDFATHER FOR ENCOURAGING HER TO STICK WITH PLAYING IN A BAND. CONTRIBUTED BY EMMA FARAHAY

When senior tuba player Emma Farahay took the field at Ohio Stadium on Saturday, Sept. 21, she was marching on the same field where her grandfather dotted the “I” in Script Ohio 66 years ago.

The tradition, where the OSU band spells out “Ohio” and dots the “I” with the tuba player, is decades old, but was an allnew experience, with a twist, for Farahay.

Farahay is following in her grandfather’s footsteps by becoming a key member of a university band. Her grandpa, Richard Taylor, played the tuba in Ohio State’s marching band in the 1950s. Farahay has been working at it since middle school.

“He always encouraged me to have fun and enjoy band to its fullest,” Farahay said. “Something I’ll always be thankful for.”

Miami’s marching band director Brooke Johnson says it’s the leadership qualities Farahay displays that makes her stand out more than anything.

“She’s become one of my go-to leaders,” Johnson said. “I can put her in charge of something and know that it’s gonna get done.”

Farahay has been playing tuba since the 6th grade. Currently, she is one of two tuba section leaders. Farahay is also in pep band and symphony band, which is a concert group that performs during the spring.

WITH NEW BENCH BOSSES, REDHAWKS LOOK TO BOUNCE BACK PATRICK GESHAN

THE MIAMI STUDENT After a tumultuous offseason that produced a brand new coaching staff and added five new freshmen to the lineup, the Miami RedHawks hockey team is looking to bounce back after four straight losing seasons.

“If we can remain even-keeled, not get too high or low, we’ll be able to get through a lot together,” senior forward Gordie Green said.

The offseason’s largest storyline is the RedHawks new coaching staff, led by incoming head coach and Miami graduate Chris Bergeron. The sixth head coach in Miami hockey history previously spent nine seasons at Bowl-

ing Green, leading the Falcons to their first NCAA Tournament appearance in more than a decade last season, while carrying a 171-154-44 record through his tenure there.

Bergeron is also a former player at Miami and captained the RedHawks for two seasons in the early ’90s, scoring a team-high 61 points his senior year while earning Central Collegiate Hockey Association Best Defensive Forward honors.

Rounding out the staff behind the bench, the RedHawks signed associate head coaches Barry Schutte and Eric Rud, both of whom were brought on after Bergeron’s hire.

Schutte, a 1997 Miami graduate and former player, served as Bergeron’s

assistant during his time at Bowling Green.

Rud was head coach of the women’s program at St. Cloud State for the past five seasons, leading the Huskies to 48 career wins. He also spent time as an assistant coach with the men’s hockey programs at St. Cloud State and Colorado College, both of which are in the National Collegiate Hockey Conference (NCHC).

Up front, the RedHawks will return numerous weapons, including senior Gordie Green. Last season, Green led the team with 11 goals while tallying 25 points and appearing in all 38 games.

Senior forward Karch Bachman also comes back to the squad after posting four multi-point games last year.

The RedHawks’ offense will get a boost from incoming freshman Ryan Savage, who totaled 36 points in 52 regular season games between United States Hockey League teams Omaha and Muskegon last season.

“We have to score by committee,” Bergeron said. “We have a strong defensive foundation, so it’s important to build offense around that.”

Miami will return its strong defensive core from last year — an attribute Bergeron calls an early strength of the team. Returning stars on the back end for Miami include junior defenseman Rourke Russell — who led the team in blocked shots last year with 77 — and sophomore defenseman Derek Daschke, who also adds offensive spice to the squad after finishing last season first on the team in rookie scoring.

In the net, Miami will return senior Ryan Larkin, who recorded three shutouts while notching a .907 save percentage and a 3.05 goals against average last year. The Clarkston, Michigan,

Ohio, which they call, “dotting Oxford.”

Because Farahay is a senior, she was the tuba player selected to “dot Oxford” in the same stadium her grandfather had dotted the “I” 66 years ago.

“It was a really special day to be there and be on that field,” Farahay said.

Farahay has been in the band since her first year at Miami. Since joining, she said she’s made many friendships.

“It’s so amazing, just because even as a freshman, the second you join band a week early for bandcamp, you automatically know over 200 people on campus,” Farahay said. “It’s just amazing to already have that family.”

While Farahay owes a lot to the band, the band also owes a lot to her, especially the tuba section.

“Our sousaphone section has been especially solid the last few years, and I really credit that to her and her co-section leader.” Johnson said. “She takes marching band seriously, but it’s in a fun way, where I think her section really enjoys working with her.”

Johnson describes Farahay as “a hard worker,” “reliable” and “a great musician.”

But one praise stood out above the rest.

“She just loves band,” Johnson said.

“This has been such a huge part of her career while she’s been at Miami.” @LukasTheDream nelso156@miamioh.edu

native started the 2018-19 campaign off strong, earning NCHC Goaltender of the Month Honors last October.

Miami also returns junior goaltender Grant Valentine and added freshman Ben Kraws to round out the netminding squad.

Green is optimistic about the team’s season, saying the RedHawks are ready to jump into game mode following a long summer.

“I think I’m most excited to be around this group of guys,” he said.

“This is a really close group, and we’re out here to work for each other.”

The puck drops to begin a new season at 5 p.m. on Sunday, Oct. 6, coincidentally against Bergeron’s former employer, the Bowling Green Falcons.

It begins a stretch of five straight home games at the Steve ‘Coach’ Cady Arena to start the ’Hawks’ season. @real_PattyG geshanp@miamioh.edu

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Opinion

12

RIGAZIKM@MIAMIOH.EDU

TUESDAY, OCTOBER 1, 2019

STAFF EDITORIAL

According to Miami, it really is on us — because no one else has stepped up.

The following reflects the majority opinion of the editorial board.

Last week, Miami University sophomore Conor Phlegar tweeted that Chanel Miller, the woman sexually assaulted by Brock Turner at Stanford in 2015, was raped as a consequence of being drunk. After he deleted the tweets, he wrote that he stood by what he said and hoped what he said resulted in individuals expanding their views on rape.

Miami’s administration responded by tweeting that Phlegar’s views did not align with the University’s Code of Love and Honor, and that victim-blaming has no place on Miami’s campus. The tweet was followed with resources on what to do if you or someone you know has been assaulted.

Miami is correct: victim-blaming shouldn’t have a place on Miami’s campus. And, yet, it clearly does when we know there are so many students like Phlegar on this campus.

Miami is once again hiding behind the Love and Honor brand rather than implementing real, authoritative action.

In reality, the Code of Love and Honor holds virtually no significance to the student body as it isn’t actually enforced in any measurable way. The code does not shield our community from views like Phlegar’s, nor does it do anything to help change them. They’re just empty words that are convenient to throw around at convocation or a PR opportunity. Few students can even recite it, and the ones that can most likely work for the university in some capacity.

So, using those words as a way to deflect responsibility for the culture fostered on campus is disappointing and disingenuous.

Phlegar’s words were reprehensible. Someone’s gotta say it.

It’s shameful that Miami didn’t take the opportunity to say that under no circumstance is sexual assault the victim’s fault. That the responsibility lies solely on the perpetrator of the

assault, and that you should never assault another person — regardless of how drunk they were, what they were wearing, where they were, ad infinitum.

But Miami is scared to take an actual stance, and instead chooses to hide behind benign language and a hollow code.

We at The Miami Student believe we must recognize that a culture of victim-blaming exists at Miami. We also believe that, if the university isn’t going to take strong action against it, it’s up to the students to take responsibility for the culture that has been perpetuated on this campus.

Our campus — and our nation — always defaults to telling women how to defend themselves from being assaulted.

Women are told to never walk alone, never drink too much, or inevitably someone may take advantage of them. They take off their heels at night because they want to be able to run from an attacker if needed. They carry keys between their fingers, always tell a friend where they are late at night and try their best never to walk home alone.

Women are doing everything they can to not be sexually assaulted, so stop telling them to do more. The fact is, sexual assault should not be the expected default. We should instead be telling our peers to respect each other and not assault others.

To imply that someone is in charge of preventing their own sexual assault allows for a culture that looks to blame a survivor when there’s a perpetrator walking free from consequence and blame.

Thirteen sexual assaults were reported at Miami in the first month of school. Statistically, three out of every four sexual assaults are unreported. We are committing an injustice to our peers who have survived sexual assault by allowing Phlegar’s beliefs to be shared without addressing the gravity of his words.

Comments like Phlegar’s serve as a reminder of how harmful a lack of empathy can be, and that a victim-blaming mental-

THE MAJOR CHANGE

KATE STUMPH COLUMNIST

It’s a go-to question at everything from college orientation to the Thanksgiving dinner table.

“What’s your major?”

And, for the longest time, my answer was simple: “biochemistry and pre-med.”

I felt accomplished and proud telling people my major. Saying it was some kind of STEM badge of honor, like a guarantee of future success. It was as though being a premed major was a guarantee I would get into medical school and make a six-figure salary.

These feelings were confirmed by everyone’s responses.

My relatives would smile, my dad would nod and my peers would raise their eyebrows and say “Wow.” People wouldn’t ask about my GPA, they wouldn’t ask about clubs or achievements — my major was an unspoken achievement in itself.

I enjoyed the praise and admiration, but it didn’t last. It came to a screeching halt when I changed my major to creative writing.

To say my parents were disappointed would be a drastic understatement.

My friends asked, “Why would you do that?”

My relatives would whisper about me at family gatherings, saying things like, “she threw away her future,” or “how could she be so naive?”

Their reactions made me feel like a failure, and like I was taking the easy way out.

I thought people heard about my switch and assumed I wasn’t smart enough to study something “difficult.” I felt the need to tell everyone that I made the Dean’s List last semester or that I would continue with research.

Before, I looked forward to telling people about my studies. Now, I loath it more than anything.

No one understood the affect their words and reactions had on my final decision. They didn’t realize that the only reason I wasn’t pursuing my dream was because I was afraid of what others thought of me.

My love for both subjects didn’t make it any easier.

I enjoyed biochemistry, I loved studying the way little things affect big ones. But at the end of the day, I couldn’t imagine doing it for the rest of my life.

I love to write. I love everything about writing. I love the vast ways I can put words together and I love exploring the meaning behind them. I love sitting down after a long

day with a cup of coffee, my laptop and writing a poem about something I heard or saw.

And understanding that I needed to start prioritizing my mental health was a big factor in coming to this conclusion.

As a biochemistry major, I drowned under a mountain of stress, assignments and study groups. The way I viewed myself was directly correlated to the grade I received on my last assignment. I struggled, and felt like I was trying to be somebody I wasn’t.

Wanting to change that is something I shouldn’t need to justify.

And yet, I felt the need to apologize to my family and my friends for taking charge of my life and focusing on myself and my passion. I felt the need to explain that I was focusing on my mental health, something that I had pushed away for a long time.

I can’t completely blame them, because I also make flash judgements based on people’s answers to that simple, juvenile question. When people tell me that they’re majoring in math or engineering I say, “wow” and think they must be smart.

When my friend from home told me she was changing her major from biology to history, I asked her, “what can you do with that?”

“They didn’t realize that the only reason I wasn’t pursuing my dream was because I was afraid of what others thought of me.”

When I finally found the courage to share my decision with my parents, they cited the statistics. On average, students with an undergraduate degree in the humanities make $5,000-$10,000 less than their STEM counterparts. In a world where STEM is king, English majors face a competitive field where luck is a large component of success.

While statistics don’t lie, they take into account only the financial aspects of success, while leaving out some other key ingredients: What about my happiness or self-reliance?

After I made the change, I’m happier than ever. I have time to spend doing the things I love and am joining clubs with other like-minded people. Of course I feel good about myself when I get good grades, but my assignments no longer feel like work. Most of all, I get to write all the time.

I don’t know what the future holds. But freeing myself and taking charge of my own life feels like a great place to start.

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ity can exist within people close to us, whether it be a classmate, acquaintance or a friend.

It forces us to ask ourselves: are we holding our friends and peers accountable? Are we reacting to comments that perpetuate a culture of victim-blaming by educating ourselves and those around us of the negative impact those sentiments can have on our community?

Miami responded in a way that protected their own image.

And while our staff understands that freedom of speech prevents disciplinary action from being taken against Phlegar, we also believe merely separating the university from the problem is far from enough.

Without engaging, educating and holding members of our community accountable, the problem does not go away. It remains ever-present and perpetuates the pain of those who have survived assault.

This was better exemplified by the individuals who engaged with Phlegar and explained why what he said was problematic. Equally as encouraging were the individuals who called the university’s attention to Phlegar, and then let Miami know that their response was not satisfactory.

We believe it’s time for our student body to take our campus culture into our own hands, because it’s not coming from the top down anytime soon.

We cannot tolerate those who blame survivors for their assaults.

We must demonstrate Love and Honor by supporting and caring for our fellow Miamians by empathizing with those who feel fearful or unsafe.

We must act through our words and deeds in ways that reflect these values and beliefs, and call things as we see them.

After all, it’s what the Code of Love and Honor actually calls for.

It’s climate anxiety season Remember the lessons of ‘Avengers: Endgame’ (*spoilers*)

CAREY HARDIN

GUEST COLUMNIST Every fall, the UN Climate Summit floods the news with the latest dire reports on the state of our warming planet. News outlets relay forecasts of climate doom if world leaders — or, more accurately, powerful corporations themselves — do not act soon to reduce and capture carbon emissions. For the last several years, this has happened along side 90-degree October days in Oxford.

Taken together, the news and weather each fall produce what psychologists call climate anxiety, and I imagine it must be particularly difficult for college students.

You labor in service of your future every day, earning the skills and degree you hope will propel you into adult life, while a cacophony of voices imply or outright declare your future forfeit.

It’s enough to make anyone depressed. Rates of depression and anxiety among college students have doubled in the last decade and now impact between 20 and 30 percent of undergraduates.

But, there are ways to mitigate climate anxiety.

First, the news is not a neutral reflection of the world. Instead, it’s a curated collection of information best suited to grabbing and holding audience attention. People pay attention to “disaster porn,” which is one reason we are overrun with it. This means that the worst news about climate change is what gets the most attention.

Second, many people practice what communication professors Nicholas Carah and Eric Louw call “savvy debunking”, or deconstructing ideas. As soon as a suggestion to combat climate change is made — such as eating less meat — an army of debunkers destroys it. Savvy debunking feels good, but often reinforces power relationships and makes people apathetic. If every good idea can be debunked, it seems foolish to believe in or act on anything. No wonder many people feel paralyzed.

Third, and most importantly, prediction is hard. In my research on the 2007-09 financial crisis, I found that financial risk modeling is rarely correct about big events, because it is based on human judgements about an uncertain future.

Even in early 2007, when the writing was on the wall, very few economists accurately predicted the coming crash.

The writing is on the wall today when it comes to climate change. Glaciers are melting, temperatures are warming and natural disasters are intensifying. But, I am highly skeptical of reports telling us what life will be like in 2050 or 2100. All of them contain assumptions about both human actions and complex natural processes in the intervening time. All of them are based on human judgment and are therefore, to some degree, uncertain.

In this uncertainty, there is hope.

It is a hope well fictionalized in the Marvel film “Avengers: Endgame.” In the movie, the world as we know it has ended. Thanos, a being of immense power, has decided that everyone would be better off if half the population of the universe were snapped out of existence, and despite the best efforts of the Avengers, he has succeeded.

Thanos is a contradictory allegory for several pressures in our lives. In a longstanding

tradition of American comics, Thanos stands for unfreedom, planning and, ultimately, communism. Thanos decides unilaterally to murder five trillion people, but for the good of those who remain, a nod to the moral dilemma at the heart of communism.

But he also represents the chaos around us that feels too big to affect. The Avengers do everything they can to foil him, and fail, thereby losing half of all life on earth. Thanos, then, is also a personification of climate apocalypse.

And that’s why you should watch “Avengers: Endgame” if you’re struggling with climate anxiety right now. It is the story of a way forward in times of despair. In “Endgame,” the Avengers make a bizarre, seemingly impossible plan to defeat Thanos and restore what has been lost. The plan is full of real sacrifice and of facing enormous fears. Good people are lost. But the final battle scene reminds us of the real meaning of hope. Beaten and battered, seemingly defeated, the Avengers continue to fight.

As he prepares to snuff out the other half of existence, Thanos declares, “I. Am. Inevitable.”

But he is wrong.

Through great self-sacrifice, Ironman restores those Thanos killed, and defeats him.

Though the trauma of the fight was real, the Avengers succeeded in achieving something like a return to normalcy.

This is a lesson we should all take when commentators scream at us that climate apocalypse is inevitable.

Change is here, sacrifice is necessary and the trauma of living through contemporary crises cannot be avoided, but we must fight. Being paralyzed with fear is the only thing that will ensure defeat. Anything else holds open the door of hope through which some of us might slip.

With this hope, we can face not imagined, inevitable defeat, but the reality of the moment and do something about it.

It’s amazing just how much good work is being done on climate change right now. As we read in this year’s summer reading book, “One Size Fits None,” farmers around the world are investing in regenerative practices that capture carbon and produce healthy food in sustainable ways, including right here on Miami’s campus at the Institute for Food’s farm. Numerous nonprofits and NGOs are investing in projects to slow and reverse climate change. And personal actions do matter, even if they seem too small in comparison to the vastness of global climate change.

Websites like www.greenamerica.org offer research-based ways you can act individually and contribute to proven climate solutions. After 4 million people joined the Climate Strike last month, you can be assured that if you decide to take any of these actions you are not the only one.

Doing is good therapy. You should also be wary of apocalyptic climate news, keeping in mind that pundits are much better at debunking good news than they are at revealing the limits of human predictions.

So, when bad climate news yells at you this October that apocalypse is “inevitable,” remember the final battle scene in “Avengers: Endgame.” Then put down your phone, take on the swag of your favorite Marvel superhero and go out and do something about climate change. hardincf@miamioh.edu

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